From the centre of Barcelona to the Zona Franca by bike

Mobility. A new 500 metre section of bike lane allows cyclists and pedestrians to get past the Ronda Litoral ring road and access the port.

A new bike lane connects Passeig Zona Franca (from Carrer Motors) with Carrer A, facilitating the connection between the neighbourhoods of La Marina and the centre of Barcelona and other municipalities in the metropolitan area.

The 500 metre section allows pedestrians and cyclists to safely overcome the barrier represented by the Ronda Litoral and access the port of Barcelona, the ring road being impossible to cross until now. The bike lane is between 2.2 metres and 2.4 metres wide, while the pavement is between 1.8 and 4.9 metres wide. Besides facilitating safe circulation for the visually impaired, the bike lane and the patht are separated by a pavement which distinguishes which is which.

On the side nearest the mountains, the bike lane will follow Pg. Zona Franca and C/ Motors, where new bike lanes are planned. On the side nearest the sea, it will follow Carrer A. In this area, the traffic-light controlled junction has an automatic detection system for bikes on the pavement and a button for pedestrians, offering cyclists and pedestrians priority when crossing.

The work cost 878,064,87 euros, 16% of which was covered by theÀrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB) and the rest, by Barcelona City Council. The lane is part of the first call for subsides by the AMB to improve connectivity with Barcelona.

Connecting an isolated zone

The bike lane connects the centre of Barcelona with the Zona Franca industrial estate. The latter was developed in the 1960s, but when the Ronda Litoral was built in the 1980s it became more physically cut off from the city centre.

The Zona Franca bike lane is a step in the right direction in improving metropolitan connections for cyclists. The City Council is working to extend the bike lane network and cycling routes as a way of moving towards more sustainable mobility. Since the start of this term of office, the number of kilometres of bike lanes in the city has increased by 21% and the aim is to reach a total of 308 kilometres.

A total of 62.5 kilometres of bike laneshave been put out to tender this year. The aim is to keep building them so that they are all ready by the first quarter of 2018.